An Awakening
I remember the year 1981 and the vivid memories I have of Diane and I driving down to the Oregon coast on our holidays. We rented a cottage for a week on scenic Cannon Beach near Seaside, Oregon. It was here that I remember reading through a prophetic book by Hal Lindsey. This book “The Late Great Planet Earth” was the number one non-fiction bestseller in the world, with the sole exception of the Bible, for 10 consecutive years, from 1970 to 1980 (as authenticated by Time Magazine).
I remember it made for very compelling reading at the time. The impact it had on me cannot be overstated. I was so fascinated I became a voracious reader of anything related to biblical prophecy. I was really intrigued and inspired when reading about all the biblical prophecies being fulfilled throughout the ages. Hal’s book made me think. Think of the really big, if not biggest of all issues: Why are we here? What was life all about? What happens after we die? Being a non-believer at the time, I have to admit it was a scary book to read and I think Lindsay’s primary intention was to frighten people into converting, which I didn’t agree with. However, the book got my attention and I started to search and seek for answers to life’s questions. I remember after the trip to Oregon I started reading various books on prophecy and that really got into reading God’s word; comparing prophecies of the various books I read and confirming it with Scripture.
Just talking on the subject of biblical prophecy gets me very excited. It was the prophecies of the Bible that captivated and intrigued me and convinced me that the Bible was truly the Word of God. It was a no-brainer, and it didn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that only God could predict the future and the course of world history in advance. It was just so logical, and it made complete sense to me. God considers Bible prophecy important and that is why He put so much of it in the Scriptures. Look, I’m not talking about just a few instances but about hundreds upon hundreds of prophecies concerning people, places, and events, etc. It comes as a surprise to many people that no less than 300 times in the New Testament, future events are mentioned. God is not hesitant to reveal the truth of the future. Matter of fact, He commands us to be ready for what is coming. When it was written, over 26% of the Bible’s content by volume was prophetic. The Bible that I’m looking at right now has over 1800 pages and just imagine one quarter of those pages are devoted to prophecy. Who else but God could so boldly and accurately predict history in advance? To me, fulfilled prophecy is the best evidence that shows that the Bible is the inspired Word of God.
Bible prophecy can be unnerving. Hollywood makes money scaring people so it loves to use apocalyptic themes. The truth can be scary. But isn’t it better to be scared and prepared, than happy and condemned? Thankfully, God has not left us in the dark about the really important things concerning the future. He has given us revelation. End times prophecy touches every person alive today. Uncovering something like biblical prophecy allows us to see and understand; gives us direction and a point of reference. We stop stumbling in the dark and begin to walk in the light. Remember the movie “The Wizard of Oz?” Dorothy and her friends went through many trials in Oz, but they always had “the yellow brick road.” Because of that they always knew where they were and where they were going and that gave them orientation, assurance, and hope. This is exactly what biblical prophecy gives us today regarding God’s future plans for mankind.
As an example: The book of Daniel was written about 26 centuries ago, but unlike the other 65 books of the Bible, some of the prophecies in the book of Daniel were sealed up until the end times. It means that certain information in the book of Daniel remained secret until the end time arrives. My study of Bible prophecy has brought me to the conclusion that we are living chronologically at the time of the end of man’s government on earth. God sealed up the book of Daniel until the time of the end because the message in Daniel and Revelation belong to the final generation.
The “Last Days” are slated for only one generation in history and only that particular generation. For this reason, God has unsealed the book of Daniel so that we can understand His plans before He exercises His wrath on earth. The year 1967 fulfilled this key prophecy of Christ Jesus: “And they (the Jewish people) will be led away captive into all Nations (A.D. 70 &135). And Jerusalem will be trampled by Gentiles UNTILL the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled (Luke 21:24).” The year 1967 marked the end of more than 2500 years of Gentile rule over Jerusalem when Israel gained control of the entire city of Jerusalem during the Six-Day War. This is just more proof that we are now living in the end times. I believe those individuals born after 1967 will be the generation that will experience God’s wrath on earth, called the Great Tribulation, if they haven’t put their faith in Christ Jesus.
Speaking of the 7-year Tribulation period, Jesus said, “For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, nor, nor ever shall be. And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved (nobody would survive); but for the elect’s sake those days will be shortened (Matthew 24: 21-22).” This description isolates the period from all the inquisitions, pogroms, purges, massacres, and genocides of history. This prophecy could not have been fulfilled by any previous persecutions because it is clearly stated that it will be ended by the Second Coming of Christ.
The book of Daniel gives us the timeframe for the end times. The Olivet Discourse found in Matthew 24 gives us a thumbnail sketch of the sequence of the end times, and the book of Revelation gives us the details. These three references are essential to an understanding of the end times. As God’s plan of the ages continues to unfold in history, the clarity of our understanding of biblical revelation will become sharper and more distinct. In the final analysis, prophetic truth is not, nor has ever been, dependent on the approval or even the understanding of any man and that includes me.
Seeing prophecy fulfilled in our time verifies the Bible as God’s absolute word. Prophecy is God’s signature on world history, and on the future of the world. Over 100 direct prophecies of Christ first coming were literally fulfilled. Fulfilled prophecy is evidence that the Bible can be trusted. What I find intriguing and captivating today are the hundreds of unfulfilled prophecies concerning Christ and His second coming. The very same prophets who so accurately portrayed the first coming of Christ, also portrayed clearly His second coming and the conditions of the end times. What’s really exciting is that we get to witness these events in our time with our own eyes. Understanding prophecy gives us an eternal perspective on life.
Hal Lindsey’s ground-breaking book truly brought the study of end time events into the forefront of modern evangelical thought and discussion. The book became an instant phenomenon that inspired multitudes of evangelical preachers. The astonishing thing to those of us who have studied the prophetic Scriptures is that we are watching the fulfilment of these prophecies in our time. Some of the future events that were predicted thousands of years ago read like today’s newspaper.
Scripture reveals a grand design that’s unfolding in our day and in our generation. We face the worst economic crisis imaginable, with the distinct risk of moving into a state of economic totalitarianism. We are living in very fragile times. The truth is we are in a crisis of biblical proportion. These are unprecedented times. We are charting new territory almost every day. Many of us fail to grasp the enormity of the coming economic meltdown. There is no stopping destiny. Things are going to happen just as Bible prophecy said it would. Never before in history have all the factors been present for the fulfilment of prophecy relating to end time trends and events. It was only possible in our generation to understand prophetic biblical end time prophecies. Over the past 70 years we have seen the fulfilment of prophetic Scripture never seen by any other generation. History is headed to a divinely designed and revealed end. If it matters enough to God to reveal it, it should matter enough to us to understand the revelation of it. Remember that God has not given us Bible prophecy to scare us but to prepare us.
Economic collapse is not necessary an event, it is a process. Understand that the world is on a collision course with disaster. Our world financial structures now hang by the thinnest of threads. People won’t react until it’s too late. They just will simply not believe that things could get as bad as they could. The result is that they will be devastated. We simply refuse to see the evidence that’s right in front of our face, because it is unlike anything we have experienced before in our lifetime. The normalcy bias kicks in and we continue to go about our lives as if nothing is unusual or out of the ordinary. In hindsight, it will all appear to be so obvious yet today for most people the idea of a global financial meltdown is still an unfathomable event.
According to Bible prophecy, earth is careening towards its final act on the stage of life. God is assembling the cast of characters and making preparations for the final scene. A scene so powerfully dramatic that nothing could possibly compare. We live in perilous times, and it is incumbent upon all individuals to be informed about the climatic days in which we now live. We are heading towards a global economic Armageddon, and the day of reckoning is rapidly approaching. Bible prophecy and current world events are intersecting to give us an unparalleled glimpse into our future final days, aligning prophecy with end time signs.
Still have your doubts. Let me give you just one example: Why is it that in the history of interest rates going back over 3000 years to the present time, this is the first time in history governments have driven interest rates below the zero marker. Why is that? Is it because the economies of the world are in such great shape? No, absolutely not! Truth be known all governments of the world are financially bankrupt. They continually borrow and just keep printing money with no intention whatsoever of ever paying off the debts. All governments are broke. The endgame is that this scheme is coming to an end. There is absolutely no way out of this mess except default on all debt and this is why we hear from global elitists and world government leaders pushing for a great reset of the world financial system. The negative interest rates in Europe have wiped out the bondholders, pension funds, and kept governments on life support since 2014. Friends, the future has arrived. We are living in the end times. You can’t afford to miss what’s coming next.
We are living in extraordinary times. Before our very eyes, the stage is being set for the fulfilment of ancient prophecies foretelling the end of this age. In all the years of human history, we are the first generation living in a time when these events are coming to pass. Prepare yourself for a fascinating look (as we will discuss in future postings) at a topic that permeates God’s word and will undoubtedly affect the lives of every person on earth – perhaps sooner than you think.
Oscar
COMMENT:
Your local church may not be talking about Christ’s second coming but the prophecies concerning Jesus imminent return are all around us. You would think God would want us to know His plans for the Second Coming of Christ. After all, there were hundreds of prophecies concerning the first coming of Christ that were fulfilled literally. Surely, it is intelligent to believe that the prophecies concerning His second coming will also be fulfilled literally. Why? Because they were written and spoken very largely by the very same prophets and on the same occasion as those prophecies concerning Christ first coming.
Jesus was very adamant about discerning the times we are living in. He called the religious leaders of Israel hypocrites for not discerning the signs of the times they were living in (Matt.16:3). Are we also hypocrites for not heeding Bible prophecy pertaining to Christ’s second coming? Today, we are surrounded by so many obvious end-time signs that we would have to be blind not to see them, yet many pulpits remain silent when it comes to Bible prophecy. What a tragedy!
>Oscar Leske
F/B – Signs Of Our Times
UnderstandingTheSignsOfOurTimes.com